Kodama, Yoshio

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JaPAN Yoshio KODAMA

Rightist Leader

Yoshio Kodama
(pronounced kohdahmah)
is one of the most
powerful men in Japan.

He was instrumental in
founding the ruling
Liberal Democratic
Party (LDP), had a hand
in naming several
Prime Ministers , and
lias settled disputes
among top businessmen.

He commands the
allegiance of Japan's
ultrarightists and is
blood brother to a number
of yakuza (leaders of the Japanese underworld) .

Kodama' s power, which he skillfully wields
from behind the scenes, rests in his considerable
wealth — both monetary and in obligations owed him
for past favors. He uses his wealth lavishly
to sponsor like-minded politicians and patriotic
youth movements and to encourage the martial
arts, a military alliance among anti-Communist
regimes in Asia, and a revival of the old emperor
system .

Living Legend of Ultranationalism

One of the causes to which Kodama has devoted
much of his time and money is the rightwing,
ultranationalist movement. He joined the movement
in his teens, and his name was associated with
terrorist incidents and rightist arrests that
marked the upsurge of Japanese militarism in the
early 1930 's. After the outbreak of war with
China, Kodama organized an underground agency
based in Shanghai to procure strategic material
for the Imperial Navy. The Kodama Agency was
also involved in smuggling, narcoti.cs trafficking
and paramilitary operations. It was through this
organ that Kodama accumulated the treasure in

NAZI WAR CRIMES DISCLOSURE ACT

EXEMPTIONS Section 3(b)

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(2)(B) Methods/Sources SEORE .[

(2)(G) Foreion Relations [J

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NOFOEN

Yoshio KODAMA (cont.)

gold, platinum, diamonds and radium that has
allowed him to support numerous rightwing and
anti-Communist groups since World War II.

During the 1960's Kodama headed the Youth
Thought Study Society, the top rightist organization
in Japan. Established in 1961, the society is
composed of 30 rightwing organizations and has an

estimated membership of 2,700 men. Kodama
the society in military training

CHS .

kill:

te 1960 's, and his goal of '
(in contrast to the "one mat

exercises
"one man,
for one

led

in

fifty

motto of the prewar extreme nationalists) has
become a rallying slogan for the rightists.

Kodama chose to entrust the leadership of the
society tc younger activists in July 1970, but
he has continued to finance its activities. He
hopes that the ultranationalists will consolidate
into a federation capable of a decisive confrontation
with leftists and labor organizations. He also
underwrites the training of a private army that
is designed to support regular Japanese forces
in case of a Communist uprising. In the past
he has also publicized the capability and
willingness of the rightists to rescue police
when they are unable to control the challenge of
the radical leftists.

Backstage Politician

The wealth Kodama accumulated during the war
and the prestige he earned in wartime conservative
circles also allowed him to play a strong role
in postwar politics, both national and international.
He was imprisoned as a Class A war crimes suspect
after the war but was never brought to trial, and
he became politically active after the end of
the Occupation. Kodama did much to advance the
political careers of his close friends Eisaku
Sato, Nobusuke Kishi and Ichiro Hatoyama, all of
whom served as Prime Minister. Kodama was deeply
involved in the normalization of Japan-Korean

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Yoshio KODAMA (cont.)

relations in the mid-1960's. In 1973, after the
Kim Tae-chung kidnaping had thrown relations between
the two countries into turmoil, it was Yoshio Kodama
that leading LDP politician Yasuhiro Nakasone called
upon to suggest solutions for the crisis.

Early Life

Yoshio Kodama was born on 18 February 1911 in
Fukushima Prefecture to a family of samurai rank.

He received his primary schooling in Tokyo and in
Seoul, Korea, where he resided for a time v/.ith his
sister. For 2 years, while working in a factory in
Korea, he attended the Zenrin' Commercial School at
night. He received no further formal schooling,
but he continued his education through private
study and is widely read in the social sciences.

Personal Data

Kodama has a simple, direct manner, and he uses
straightforward, unadorned language. He has been
married twice. In 1935 he married for the first
time; this marriage ended in divorce, and in 1940
he married again. He has at least one son and one
daughter by his second wife. Kodama is thought to
be fluent in a dialect of spoken Chinese. His
autobiography, translated into English under the
title I Was Defeated , has been a best-seller.

29 January 1976

Comments and questions on this report may be directed
tc u Z2 CIA/DDI/CRS, Code 14Z J ext. 6291.

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